The present invention relates to a strain relief device for an electrical connector. More particularly, the invention relates to a strain relief device for holding an electrical cable in position at its point of entry into the connector.
In the use of electrical connectors there is a need to provide a device for holding or clamping an electrical cable at the point of entry into the connector. Various strain relief techniques have been devised for use with electrical connectors in an effort to mechanically secure a cable thereto. One of the concerns, in providing this strain relief, is the ease with which the cable may be attached and detached from the electrical connector. Another concern, which has not been properly addressed and solved, is the requirement for clamping cables of various diameters.
Electrical connectors of the type to which the present invention relates are shown, for example, in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,449,778 and the U.S. Pat. No. 4,501,459 (reissued as U.S Pat. No. Re. 32,760), both of these connectors being of the electrically shielded type for particular use in the data communication industry.
The strain relief device disclosed in these patents requires the terminal end of a cable to be specially configured with a section of widened insulation having a circumferencial groove which fits into a slot in the connector housing.
Other solutions to the strain relief problem are disclosed in the U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,619,494 and 4,682,836. In the electrical connectors disclosed in these patents, the strain relief is effected by providing a metal washer or the like on the terminal end of the cable which is mechanically surrounded by the shielding braid. The cable end, with this washer, is then inserted into a slot in the housing before the housing is closed. Thereafter, the washer, which is larger than the housing opening, prevents removal of the cable.
Both of these prior art solutions to the strain relief problem require that the cable be modified at its terminal end. In addition, these solutions do not accommodate cables of different size.